Reviewed by: Cinemaniac

The Cast

Starring:
Hilary Swank, Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman, Jay Baruchel, Christina Cox
Directed by:
Clint Eastwood
Produced by:
Tom Rosenberg, Albert S. Ruddy, Clint Eastwood
Duration: 2 hours, 17 mins

The Story

In the wake of a painful estrangement from his daughter, boxing trainer Frankie Dunn has been unwilling to let himself get close to anyone for a very long time--then Maggie Fitzgerald walks into his gym. In a life of constant struggle, Maggie's gotten herself this far on raw talent, unshakable focus and a tremendous force of will. But more than anything, she wants someone to believe in her. The last thing Frankie  needs is that kind of responsibility-- let alone that kind of risk--but won over by Maggie's sheer determination, he begrudgingly agrees to take her on. In turns exasperating and inspiring each other, the two come to discover that they share a common spirit that transcends the pain and loss of their pasts, and they find in each other a sense of family they lost long ago. Yet, they both face a battle that will demand more heart and courage than any they've ever known.

Review

Award Winning movie "Million Dollar Baby" is a masterpiece, pure true and honest. The story is about a fight trainer who's getting old a wild girl who thinks she can be a boxer. The narrator in the movie is an old friend of the trainer. Basically its not a boxing – fighting movie. It's a movie about the boxer, how she feels, her thoughts and inner world. This is for sure the film of the year.

Frankie (played by Clink Eastwood) is the trainer who runs a low-class gym in Los Angeles and reads poetry on his free time. Maggie (played by Hilary Swang) comes from southwest Missouri, who has been waitressing since she was 13 and sees boxing as her chance to escape her miserable work and live a different life.

Scrap (playes by Morgan Freeman) was managed by Frankie into a title bout. Now he lives in a room at the gym and now he's Frankie's partner to  conversations that have coiled down through the years. At first Frankie refuses to train Maggie and finaly it's Scrap that convinces him to do it by telling him: "She grew up knowing one thing. She was trash."

Some directors lose focus as they grow older. Others gain it, learning how to tell a story that contains everything it needs and absolutely nothing else. "Million Dollar Baby" is Eastwood's 25th film as a director. Comparing it , with "Mystic River" we must say that's a great film also, but this one is probably the best he ever made. It's the kind of movie where you sit very quietly in the theater and are drawn deeply into lives of the characters that you care very much about.

Morgan Freeman is the narrator in the film, just as he was in "The Shawshank Redemption," which this film resembles in the way the Freeman character describes a man who became his lifelong study. The voice is flat and factual: You never hear Scrap going for an affect or putting a spin on his words. He just wants to tell us what happened. He tells us how the girl first walked in the gym how consistent she was, how Frankie finally agreed to train her, and what happened afterwards. Scrap is not merely an observer; the film gives him a life of his own when the others are offscreen. It is about all three of these people.

Hilary Swank is astonishing as Maggie. Every note is true. Consider the scene where she and Scrap sit at a lunch counter, and Scrap tells how he lost the sight in one eye, how Frankie blames himself for not throwing in the towel. It is an important scene for Freeman, but I want you to observe how Swank has Maggie do absolutely nothing but listen. No "reactions," no little nods, no body language except perfect stillness, deep attention and an unwavering gaze.

Eastwood is attentive to supporting characters, who make the surrounding world seem more real. The most unexpected is a Catholic priest who is seen, simply, as a good man; movies all seem to put a negative spin on the clergy these days. Frankie goes to mass every morning and says his prayers every night, and Father Horvak (played by Brian F. O'Byrne) observes that anyone who attends daily mass for 23 years tends to be carrying a lot of guilt. Frankie turns to him for advice at a crucial point, and the priest doesn't respond with church orthodoxy but with a wise insight: "If you do this thing, you'll be lost, somewhere so deep you will never find yourself."

Cinema nowadays is often made of effects and sensation. This film is focused on the lives of three people how their actions grow out of who they are and why. That is all but isn't that the most important thing?

 The movie has won 4 Academy Awards which are for Best film, Best Director,
Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor.